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Bertuzzi gets first hat trick; Detroit beats Minnesota 5-2 | NHL

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Tyler Bertuzzi recorded his first career hat trick and the Detroit Red Wings ended a three-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild on Saturday night.

Thomas Vanek had two goals for the Red Wings, winners for the second time in 11 games. Gustav Nyquist, Dylan Larkin, Jonathan Ericsson and Filip Hronek each had two assists.

Nino Niederreiter and Luke Kunin scored for the Wild, who lost for the second time in three games and were booed by many fans remaining at the end.

Playing in his 100th career game, Bertuzzi completed his three-goal performance at 8:38 of the third period, converting a feed from Nyquist by lifting a backhand past Devan Dubnyk.

A few hats – and one octopus – were tossed onto the ice by the many Red Wings fans in attendance.

Bertuzzi, who had one goal in his previous 18 games, redirected a shot by Larkin past Dubnyk 47 seconds into the third.

He tipped in a shot by Nyquist 24 seconds into the game.

Vanek broke a 2-all tie at 14:50 of the second period.

His initial shot was blocked by Kunin, but Vanek controlled the loose puck and blasted a shot past Dubnyk from the slot for his first multigoal game since a hat trick on March 27, 2018.

Detroit had a season-high 21 of its 37 shots in the middle period. Minnesota had two, the fewest allowed in a period this season by the Red Wings.

One of those was Niederreiter’s first goal in 13 games with a power-play tally 17 seconds into the second. Vanek tied the game 28 seconds later on a rebound of his first attempt.

Minnesota, which finished with 19 shots, had no third-period shots in beating Winnipeg 3-2 Thursday.

Kunin beat Jimmy Howard with a long wrist shot late in the first period to make it 1-all. It was Kunin’s first goal of the season and first in 27 games since Oct. 31, 2017.

NOTES: Ericsson had three goals and no assists in his first 28 games. . Wild C Eric Staal has one goal in 13 games; RW Mikael Granlund has one in 19. . Detroit C Michael Rasmussen missed his fourth straight game with a lower-body injury.

UP NEXT

Red Wings: Host Anaheim on Tuesday.

Wild: at Philadelphia on Monday, the lone road game in a six-game stretch